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30 Nov 2015

There were
two common themes amongst the speakers at CPIT's Youth Transition showcase recently.
One was young people looking for alternative learning environments to
traditional school and the
other was heartfelt thanks for the staff at CPIT who have helped these young
people to succeed through Youth Transition programmes.

Alex Jobbit
joined Canterbury Tertiary
College (CTC), which allowed him to study Retail at CPIT while remaining
enrolled in and completing NCEA credits at his secondary school.

"Before CTC
I was at school but I didn't do anything," he said. "I couldn't carry on doing
nothing. The world doesn't work like that. I would love to sit and play video
games all day but I can't."

Alex
realised he liked his practical and theoretical studies in Retail. "Now I work
hard at school and I am actually becoming a productive member of society. CPIT
will whip you into shape, if you need it, but you have to want to change."

Most of the
students who spoke to the large audience of peers, families and school
representatives at the event had quickly realised that Youth Transitions
offered them an opportunity to find out what they like to do and to then pursue
it.

Along with
CTC, CPIT also offers Youth Guarantee programmes, where students leave school
and study full time at CPIT. Both are fee-free and align with government
priorities to engage youth in different ways in order to achieve educational
success.

Youth
Transitions programmes are supported with robust pastoral care to help young
people adapt to the tertiary environment and overcome any difficulties they
might have in literacy and numeracy or with personal challenges.

While Youth
Transition programmes offer career pathways, tutors also recognise the need to
enable the students to create their own future. "Youth Transition programmes
are about building confidence, gaining life skills, making friends and learning
to be an adult," CPIT Chief Executive Kay Giles said at the event in CPIT's new
Whareora (Science and Wellbeing facility). A passionate advocate of engaging
youth in vocational training, she told the students, "Your success is what makes
our work worthwhile."

The approach
seems to be working. "I just love it," D'Braye Kemp said several times during
his presentation. "Next year I am going onto level 4 Joinery and then onto an
apprenticeship. I can't thank the tutors enough."

A group of
cookery students told the audience, "These courses are great, especially if you
don't know what you want to do. 11 out of 15 of us are continuing our cookery
studies."

TOA
(Indigenous sports) students are already passing values on to younger students.
"Through the Sports for Life programme we are teaching sports to young kids and
each week we teach them a value like respect or participation."

Many of the
speakers paid tribute to the support from their hard working tutors and
pastoral staff. Of the 800 enrolments in
Canterbury Tertiary College (CTC) and Youth Guarantee (including external
providers) in 2015, to date more than half
have enrolled in further study through programmes at CPIT and over 30% have
found employment or apprenticeships.